Yamaha’s Y/AI is real as a full-scale concept display model, but Yamaha’s official materials do not announce it as a production motorcycle for sale. Designed for the Netflix anime Tokyo Override, the futuristic race machine has appeared at motor shows in Thailand, Japan and France.
What is the Yamaha Y/AI?
Y/AI is a future race-machine concept Yamaha designed for Tokyo Override, an anime set in Tokyo 100 years from now, where artificial intelligence is woven into daily life and the city is highly automated. Yamaha worked with the animation team on the fictional world and built a full-scale physical model of the machine.
Yamaha announced its collaboration with Netflix on November 22, 2024. The series began streaming globally and exclusively on Netflix on November 21, 2024, according to Yamaha’s collaboration announcement. The story follows motorcycle-riding protagonists who uncover wrongdoing beneath an apparently ideal society. Yuske Fukada and Veerapatra Jinanavin directed the series, with RiFF Studio as animation producer.
Is Y/AI a real motorcycle you can buy?
Y/AI exists as a full-scale concept model for display. Yamaha’s official pages describe its design and exhibition appearances, but do not identify it as a production motorcycle or announce retail availability. The existence of the physical model does not establish that a consumer version is planned.
#1 Best Overall
- 1/12 scale plastic model assembly kit.
- Multi-piece recreation of the 4-cylinder engine has superlative detail, from the fine depictions of the radiator, oil cooler and complex cover, to the tubing included to recreate various lines.
- Depictions of engine, swing arm, front fork, upper cowl and more are screw-fixed to the frame for maximum precision and durability.
- New synthetic rubber tires depict Bridgestone Battlax RS10s with realistically-recreated tread pattern.
- Metal transfer to depict Yamaha emblem included.
Yamaha’s anime collaboration also involved existing motorcycles, but they are not Y/AI. The company provided 3D data, images and recorded sounds for the YZF-R1 and VMAX for use in the series. Those real models should not be mistaken for the fictional future racer.
How the design connects to the story
Yamaha’s design account centers on Amarin, the racer who pilots Y/AI. She insists on controlling the machine herself rather than relying on AI, so the designers focused on the sensations she would feel while riding.
Rank #2
- Descriptif produit: Maquette plastique à assembler
- Age minimum : 14 ans, Tam, scale: 1:12, length of model: 187 mm., Scale: 1:12, Length of model: 187 mm., Tamiya Yamaha Xv1000 Virago (1/12)
- scale: 1:12
- length of model: 187 mm.
- Scale: 1:12
Yamaha designer Satoshi Nakamura explained one choice: “For instance, rather than using electronic suspension control, we deliberately chose a mechanical spring setup to preserve a more direct, physical feel.” The company describes the design as combining tactile, organic areas where the rider makes contact with more overtly mechanical sections. The contrast was intended to express people and machines retaining distinct identities while working together.
Yamaha’s announcement for the Lyon Motor Show says Y/AI shares a rider position with the MotoGP machine YZR-M1, a choice intended to preserve realism in its futuristic form. That design reference does not make Y/AI a YZR-M1 variant.
Rank #3
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- Made using the highest quality components and materials
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Where Yamaha has exhibited the full-scale model
Yamaha’s exhibition records document three public appearances. The attendance figures below are reported by Yamaha for each event, not independent counts or estimates of how many people specifically saw Y/AI.
| Dates | Event and appearance | Attendance reported by Yamaha |
|---|---|---|
| November 29–December 10, 2024 | World premiere of the full-scale model at the 41st Thailand International Motor Expo in Bangkok | Approximately 1.4 million visitors to the exhibition |
| October 31–November 9, 2025 | Japan premiere at Japan Mobility Show 2025, alongside the MOTOLATOR_U riding simulator | Not stated for this event in the cited exhibition record |
| February 26–March 1, 2026 | Lyon Motor Show in France, as part of Yamaha’s 70th-anniversary exhibition | About 200,000 event visitors; Yamaha also says roughly 70 motorcycles were shown in its anniversary display |
The dates and event details come from Yamaha’s exhibition listings and its Lyon announcement. Yamaha design representative Nakamura separately reported that nearly 1,500 visitors tried the MOTOLATOR_U at Japan Mobility Show 2025; that is a simulator figure, not a Y/AI visitor count.
Rank #4
- This plastic model requires assembly and painting. Adhesives, tools, paints, etc., sold separately
- 1/12 scale unpainted plastic assembly kit
- Reproduction of the 1995 model using sunburst paint by artisans
- Includes custom parts, such as custom tank, muffler, and handle
- Precision reproduces the characteristic engine, front drum breaker, and body design
Y/AI compared with Yamaha’s real motorcycles
| Motorcycle | Role in the available Yamaha material | What the sources establish |
|---|---|---|
| Y/AI | Fictional future race-machine concept for Tokyo Override; also built as a full-scale display model | Design rationale and exhibition history; no consumer specifications or retail availability are announced in the cited materials |
| YZF-R1 | Existing Yamaha motorcycle represented in the anime | Yamaha supplied 3D data, images and recorded sounds for the series |
| VMAX | Existing Yamaha motorcycle represented in the anime | Yamaha supplied 3D data, images and recorded sounds for the series |
| YZR-M1 | MotoGP machine used as a rider-position reference for Y/AI | The Lyon announcement identifies the shared rider position; it does not identify Y/AI as a version of the YZR-M1 |
These are different kinds of comparison: Y/AI is a story-specific concept, while the YZF-R1 and VMAX are real motorcycles used as references in the anime. Yamaha’s cited material does not provide comparable consumer specifications or prices that would support a performance ranking.
Quick Recap
Best Value
- Length: 169mm, Width: 64mm, Height:93mm
- Scale: 1:12
- Instruction manual and painting guide included
- Ready to assemble precision model kit
- Picture shows fully assembled and painted model
What Yamaha has—and has not—confirmed
- Confirmed: Yamaha designed Y/AI for Tokyo Override, made a full-scale concept model and exhibited it at named events.
- Not established by the cited official materials: production plans, specifications for a consumer motorcycle, a price, or retail availability.
- Merchandise: the cited sources do not document an official physical Y/AI retail item or directly related accessory. That does not establish whether unrelated third-party merchandise exists.
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